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To be clear I can’t actually consciously tell them apart. Takes a lot more musical training and talent to do that. I suspect this is also why most western-attuned ears simply can’t get into raga at all. But notably when I do get in the mood every few years it’s always raga.
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And when a song on American radio catches my ear it is nearly always a slightly “weird” human voice and a song that involves vocal play that borders on just-tempered as in hooks my attention in a slightly “raga” way even if it has no relation/influence at all
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I recall from music theory reading that all music, including western, was just-tempered in antiquity and the scale centers the natural human voice as the standard. Chromatic centers the natural geometry of instruments like the piano, and human voices/ears have to be trained to it
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I suspect most midwit ears can only “deep” listen to one or the other. As in pay direct attention on purpose. You can shallow listen to either in the background of other tasks.
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Interestingly enough I can’t do accents or impressions either, or tell slight differences in accents apart. I guess listening is an actual talent.
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Another data point: I find the harmonium (pumped reed organ) extremely grating. It’s an equal-tempered western instrument sorta hacked into service as an approximately just-tempered accompaniment instrument in semi-classical and pop Indian music.
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Classical purists hate it and will only use a just-tempered instrument like the tanpura for accompaniment (these things are used as scale-setting drones) but I don’t have the refined ear to have such subtle preferences. Yet I dislike the harmonium at a visceral level.
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Hmm. Duffy (begging you for mercy), some Adele, some Maroon 5, Dance Monkey (dance for me) seemed to hook me in a vaguely “raga” way. Oddly enough no conscious fusion attempts like George Harrison’s or John McLaughlin seems to hook me at all. I find that stuff dull.
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Replying to @vgr
are there examples of such songs that come to mind?
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